international student perceptions of leadership and
TRANSCRIPT
ii
International Student Perceptions of Leadership and Involvement on Campus
THESIS
Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Business Administration Degree with
Honors Research Distinction in the Max M. Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University
By
Rachel Elizabeth Horvath
Undergraduate Degree in Business Administration with a Specialization in Operations Management
Dissertation Committee:
Dr. Roger Bailey, Advisor
Dr. John Gray, Advisor
Dr. Elliot Bendoly, Associate Dean
The Ohio State University
Max M. Fisher College of Business
2018
iii
Abstract
As the international student population on college campuses has grown over decades, it has
become vital that universities improve their understanding of these students’ values to better serve their
specific needs. In this paper, perceptions held by international students regarding involvement and
leadership in student organizations will be explored through a survey of undergraduate students at the
Fisher College of Business. The objective of this research is to analyze factors that relate to emphasis
placed on involvement and leadership by both domestic and international students pursuing business
degrees. Specifically, we focus on how involvement in student organizations and on-campus activities
may change from high school to college for members of both groups and seek to discover if there is a
connection between time spent on leadership and extracurricular activities during high school and
engagement with student organizations at university. Using an electronic survey sent via email, we
collected data from 858 students at the Fisher College of Business in December of 2017. Hypothesis
testing was utilized to compare domestic and international students as well as the change in individuals’
values from high school to college. Results show that the two groups place significantly different value
on involvement and leadership in high school, with domestic students reporting higher overall
importance. However, these differences diminish from high school to college with the two groups
converging to hold more similar values once at university. This change was found to be statistically
significant with four paired t-tests targeting values of involvement and leadership.
iv
Dedication
For my parents, Mike and Patti, whose support has enabled me to grow into the person I am
today, and my sister, Stephanie, who is not only my best friend but also an excellent role model. We are
a small but mighty family, and without you three I would never have had the courage to dive into
leadership and involvement at Ohio State.
v
Acknowledgments
Reflecting on the person I was when I first stepped foot onto campus four years ago has led me
to the revelation that there are many individuals who merit thanks for the huge impact they have had on
this thesis as well as myself personally, academically, and professionally. I first would like to thank Dr.
Roger Bailey for his support over the past two years and for bringing energy and enthusiasm to our
classroom every week. His commitment to our class of Honors Contract students and helpful advice has
kept me motivated throughout the process of writing this thesis, and I am especially grateful for the extra
time he spent with me as I prepared my grant application and presentation for the Fisher Leadership
Initiative. I also thank Dr. John Gray, who has not only served as an excellent content advisor but has
also been a great mentor to look up to as I prepare to start my career with Procter & Gamble. Dr. Gray’s
insights into survey design and hypothesis testing as well as his willingness to provide candid feedback
on my numerous drafts greatly improved the quality of this thesis. The third individual to whom I owe a
huge debt of gratitude is my wonderful honors academic advisor, Kim Bader. From being her student in
business survey (BA1100H) as a freshman to having the pleasure of working alongside her in teaching
that same survey class senior year as a peer advisor, Kim has served as an incredible source of support
and advice throughout my time in the Honors program.
I am also extremely grateful to have the support of the Fisher Leadership Initiative, which
provided funding that went towards raffle prizes that increased our survey response rate. I’ve been
honored and humbled to be a grant recipient alongside researchers who are doing incredible work to
better our campus and the greater Columbus community. Lastly, I would like to thank the friends I have
made in our Honors classes for their help with peer-reviews and for their support throughout this two-
year long process. I have been involved in numerous student organizations and held leadership positions
vi
at different times during my four years at Ohio State, but the Honors & Scholars community has been
one constant throughout my time that I am extremely proud to have been part of.
Being involved on a campus as large as ours requires stepping out of one’s comfort zone while
having the courage to apply for an executive board requires more of a leap. As an eighteen-year old
moving into Siebert Hall, I didn’t consider myself a leader and I certainly never would’ve called myself
a researcher. However, my passion for learning about Chinese culture and my appreciation for those
who pushed me to dive out of my comfort zone and become a leader on campus led me to this thesis,
and I hope that in turn it will lead to the empowerment of others who are looking for their place at Ohio
State.
vii
Vita
May 2014……………………………………Highland High School
May 2018 .......................................................B.S.B.A. Operations Management, Max M. Fisher College
of Business, The Ohio State University
Fields of Study
Major Field: Business Administration, Operations Management Specialization
Minor: Mandarin Chinese
viii
Table of Contents
Abstract ...................................................................................................................................................... iii
Dedication .................................................................................................................................................. iv
Acknowledgments....................................................................................................................................... v
Vita ............................................................................................................................................................ vii
List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................. ix
List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................. x
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 1
Literature Review........................................................................................................................................ 3
Hypotheses .................................................................................................................................................. 7
Methodology ............................................................................................................................................. 10
Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................................ 12
Results ....................................................................................................................................................... 14
Discussion ................................................................................................................................................. 23
Practical Implications & Further Research ............................................................................................... 24
References ................................................................................................................................................. 26
Appendix A. Involvement on Campus Survey ........................................................................................ 29
Appendix B. Likert Scales ........................................................................................................................ 36
Appendix C. Summarized Results of Hypothesis Tests .......................................................................... 37
Appendix D. Hypothesis Test Results from Minitab ............................................................................... 40
ix
List of Tables
Table 1: Hypothesis 1 Test Results .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.8
Table 2: Hypothesis 5 Test Results .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.8
Table 3: Hypothesis 6 Test Results .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.9
Table 4: Hypothesis 7 Test Results .................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.9
Table 5: Paired T-Test Results .......................................................................................... 20
Table 6: Summarized Results of Hypothesis Tests........................................................... 37
x
List of Figures
Figure 1: Gender Proportion of Respondents .................. Error! Bookmark not defined.5
Figure 2: Academic Ranking of Respondents ................. 1Error! Bookmark not defined.
Figure 3: Race Proportion of Respondents ..................................................................... 16
Figure 4: High School Involvement Categories............... Error! Bookmark not defined.7
Figure 5: Changes in Leadership Value from High School to College .......................... 21
Figure 6: Changes in Involvement Value from High School to College ........................ 21
1
Introduction
As the number of international students attending American universities has increased 85% from
2007 to 2017, an increasing body of research in higher education has been devoted to understanding
how to best acclimate these students to US culture, what methods most effectively teach them, and how
to ensure their success both in college and after graduation (IEE Open Doors Data, 2017). Literature
reviewed on this topic explores the international student experience at university and focuses on factors
related to both academic and personal success. Currently, there exists a gap in the literature regarding
the value placed on leadership and involvement. Given that involvement in student organizations can
provide undergraduate students the opportunity to gain valuable leadership experience while engaging
with peers, we fill this gap by inquiring about the values that students hold related to the importance of
involvement on campus and leadership in student organizations. Gaining this perspective is crucial to
the success of any large public university seeking to recruit and retain new students from a diverse set of
backgrounds. All students have the potential to make unique contributions to their campus environment
and grow to be leaders in their respective fields, but is it possible that one’s cultural and educational
background feeds into their desire or ability to become involved? We seek to answer this question
through a study conducted at the Max M. Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University.
Zhao, Kuh, and Carini’s 2005 study compares international and domestic students in a similar
way to this paper’s methodology, but we extend the scope of their research to include high school
experiences with involvement and leadership as a possible indicator of subsequent involvement while at
university. We focus on preconceived notions and core values of international students regarding the
importance of involvement outside of the classroom and attaining leadership roles. This category is
2
often included in studies that explore international student experiences on campus, but we seek to dig
deeper into what barriers may exist in the involvement and leadership space on campus by developing
our understanding of what international students value and where they choose to allocate their time.
3
Literature Review
In seeking to better understand the present campus climate surrounding international student
involvement and leadership, it is important to first step back to the origins of international exchange
between countries. The first educational exchange between the United States and an Asian country
occurred in 1854, when Yung Wing became the first Chinese person to attend and graduate from a
university in the United States. In the 164 years following this milestone, the number of international
students studying in the United States has ballooned to over one million in 2017 with students from
China and India composing about half of the overall international student population (IIE Open Doors
Data, 2017). Although for decades this number was increasing across the country, from 2016 to 2017 the
Institute of International Education (IIE) found that new international student enrollment decreased by 3
percent from the previous year. This escalated to a 7 percent drop in average new student enrollment
with the Fall 2017 incoming class among universities surveyed by IIE. At The Ohio State University’s
main campus, international students account for 6,399 of 59,837 students (10.69%) enrolled in Autumn
2017 (The Ohio State University Statistical Summary, 2017). While the overall percentage of
international students at Ohio State’s main campus remained relatively stagnant from 2016 to 2017, the
incoming class of 2017 had a representation of 8% international students, or a decrease of 2.69%.
The term “international student” is defined by Snow as “individuals enrolled in institutions of
higher education who are on temporary student visas and are non-native English speakers (NNES)”.
These students provide universities with higher tuition revenues and the opportunity to develop a more
culturally diverse campus. Andrade’s 2006 paper explored the various contributions of international
students on American campuses, from tuition premiums to cultural diversification. He found that many
Canadian universities rely on revenue from international tuition to keep in-state tuition and other
4
program fees low. Consequently, universities’ revenue streams would be negatively impacted if the
downward trend of international student enrollment continues. The fear of this impact is high enough
that in their 2018 report, Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the revenue growth outlook for the
higher education sector in the United States from “stable” to “negative”, citing uncertainty surrounding
international student enrollment due to ambiguity in the future of U.S. immigration policies as an
indicator of decreasing revenues (Moody’s Higher Education, U.S. 2018 Outlook).
Outside of the substantial revenues that international students bring to universities, NAFSA
(2003) found that the contributions made by international students allow for greater understanding of
issues related to diversity and globalization. For business students specifically, attending a school with a
culturally diverse population has been shown to provide valuable advantages regarding cross-cultural
relations in the workplace (Probst et. al 1999, Calleja, 2000). Despite these valuable contributions, often
the international students themselves find difficulty adjusting to American culture and are not given
adequate resources necessary to succeed at university (Lin and Betz, 2009). This issue is especially
prevalent with students who hail from a non-western, non-English speaking country (Andrade 2006).
Snow et.al. 2005 also recognized the importance of language and cultural differences when discussing
assimilation on campus.
Pusch, in 1979, defined culture as “the sum of total ways of living, including values, beliefs,
aesthetic standards, linguistic expression, patterns of thinking, behavioral norms, and styles of
communication which a group of people has developed to assure its survival in a particular physical and
human environment”. As stated previously, culture plays an important role in a student’s adjustment to
university life. Culture shock is “typically manifested as stress, anxiety, and feelings of powerlessness,
rejection, and isolation” (Oberg, 1960). Students from Asia have been found to have the largest cultural
5
differences compared to the West (Pedersen 1991, 1994, 1997; Poyrazli et al. 2002; Ying & Liese,
1994). Stress during an international student’s adjustment process when they first arrive at university has
been found to account for 38% of variation in stress, with language barriers being the most significant
contributor to this stress (Hazen et al., 2006). Hazen and Alberts also found that a student’s self-
perceived language abilities have more of an impact on their adjustment outcome than actual language
abilities, suggesting that the confidence a student has can either contribute to or detract from their ability
to adjust.
Regarding coping mechanisms for dealing with culture shock, Zhao found that friendship
networks are critical in how international students deal with stress. This study found that international
students have prefer making friends from their same country, but those who become friends with more
Americans tend to adjust more easily (Zhao et al., 2005). This socialization with domestic students has
been proven to benefit both parties, but not all interactions between domestic and international students
have been positive. For Asian students specifically, cases of discrimination and racial microaggression
on North American campuses have been studied for decades, with a 2014 study reporting that nine out
of twelve international students of Asian descent identified feeling “excluded and avoided” as typical
occurrences on campus (Houshmand et al., 2014).
From a young age, the educational experience of international students is in many cases vastly
different than that of their domestic peers, and this disparity may lead to different levels of engagement
with extracurricular activities both in high school and at university. In mainland China, for example, life
as a student revolves heavily around examinations and has been described by one New York Times
writer as the “three-point life” of home-school-home (Kristofk, 2011). This lifestyle is seen as necessary
for success on the Gaokao, China’s extremely competitive college entrance exam (Qi, 2004). The
6
impact of this focus is that Chinese high schoolers spend significantly more time in the classroom than
their American counterparts, leading to less available time to engage in extra-curricular activities such as
organized sports or student government (Fuligni, 1995). In India, parents’ “high educational
expectations and pressure for academic achievement” have been documented as the primary cause of
anxiety for students (Deb, 2001). Like China, India’s college entrance examination score is heavily
weighted in the admissions process and there are less spots at Indian and Chinese universities than there
are students seeking enrollment. These factors heighten the pressure to excel within the classroom in
high school and may limit a student’s ability to engage in activities outside the classroom.
Zhao, Kuh, and Carini (2005) argue that because of growing diversity in US, an important goal
of higher education should be to prepare culturally competent individuals who can work with others
from different backgrounds. Given the many challenges facing international students and the financial
dependence that many universities have developed on their heightened tuition revenues, it is crucial that
universities invest in better understanding the experiences and values of these students. Involvement in
student organizations provides international students an organic opportunity to engage with their peers
while helping them develop as leaders, and universities that help to foster this growth and develop a
reputation for inclusivity may be able to attract and retain more international students.
7
Hypotheses
The overarching hypothesis of this research is that the value that international students place on
becoming involved in student organizations and obtaining leadership positions differs from domestic
students due to a combination of high school experiences, language barriers, and cultural differences.
This was segmented into two overall categories: high school values and values at Ohio State. To test
each hypothesis, numerous two-sample t-tests were conducted to determine if there is a significant
difference among international and domestic populations based on their respective responses to a 24-
question survey (see appendix A for survey). This model follows the approach set forth by Zhao, Kuh,
and Carini’s 2005 paper "A Comparison of International Student and American Student Engagement in
Effective Educational Practices."
Because all students surveyed attend the same college, terminology about Fisher-specific student
organizations was included to achieve a higher level of understanding. Additionally, this research
recognizes that in both high school and college students often must face “trade-offs” between time spent
on involvement, classwork, and test preparation; as a result, questions relating to various factors were
included. This was done purposefully to see if there is any significant difference between time spent on
academic versus involvement activities. See below for a summary of each hypothesis. Hypotheses one
through seven relate specifically to high school values, while eight through twelve discuss values while
in college.
Hypothesis 1: High School Involvement
𝐻𝑜 =In high school, the value placed on involvement is THE SAME for both domestic and
international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on involvement is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
8
Hypothesis 2: High School GPA
𝐻𝑜 =In high school, the value placed on achieving a high GPA is THE SAME for both domestic and
international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on achieving a high GPA is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 3: High School ACT, SAT, or Other College Entrance Exam
𝐻𝑜 =In high school, the value placed on college entrance exam scores is THE SAME for both domestic
and international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on college entrance exam scores is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 4: High School Class Difficulty
𝐻𝑜 =In high school, the value placed on taking advanced classes is THE SAME for both domestic and
international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on taking advanced classes is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 5: High School Extra-Curricular Activities
𝐻𝑜 =In high school, the value placed on participating in extra-curricular activities is THE SAME for
both domestic and international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on participating in extra-curricular activities is DIFFERENT
for domestic and international students
Hypothesis 6: High School Leadership Aspirations
𝐻𝑜 =In high school, the value placed on being a leader among peers is THE SAME for both domestic
and international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on being a leader among peers is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 7: University Involvement Importance
9
𝐻𝑜 =In college, the value placed on participating in being involved in extra-curriculars is THE SAME
for both domestic and international students
Ha=In high school, the value placed on being involved in extra-curriculars is DIFFERENT for
domestic and international students
Hypothesis 8: University Involvement Importance to Potential Employers
𝐻𝑜 =In college, the perceived value that potential employers place on involvement is THE SAME for
both domestic and international students
Ha=In high school, the perceived value that potential employers place on involvement is DIFFERENT
for domestic and international students
Hypothesis 9: University GPA Importance
𝐻𝑜 =In college, the value placed on earning a high GPA is THE SAME for both domestic and
international students
Ha=In college, the value placed on earning a high GPA is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 10: University Involvement Importance
𝐻𝑜 =In college, the value placed on becoming involved is THE SAME for both domestic and
international students
Ha=In college, the value placed on becoming involved is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 11: University Building Relationships Importance
𝐻𝑜 =In college, the value placed making friends is THE SAME for both domestic and international
students
Ha=In college, the value placed on making friends is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 12: University Leadership Importance
𝐻𝑜 =In college, the value placed on being a leader is THE SAME for both domestic and international
students
Ha=In college, the value placed on being a leader is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
10
Methodology
Research Design
The purpose of this survey was to gain insights from Fisher’s international students regarding
involvement in campus organizations. Students were invited to complete the survey via email, with a
raffle prize of twenty $20 Amazon gift cards as an incentive. While their email was collected for the
purposes of distributing the gift cards, no other individually identifying information was collected. The
survey first asked questions about a student’s high school environment before asking the student to rank
on individual Likert scales the relative importance that they placed on GPA, being involved in extra-
curriculars, taking advanced classes, and being a leader among their peers. Next, students indicated what
types of clubs they are or have previously been involved in at Ohio State and Fisher, as well as if they
have obtained a leadership role in any of those student organizations. The last section of the survey
inquired about general demographic information such as year, gender, home country, native language,
and whether a student was an international student.
Sample Size
Fisher College of Business’s current undergraduate population at the Columbus campus is 6,627
students, with 16% of the total population being composed of international students (roughly 1,060
students). At a 5% margin of error and confidence level of 95%, the required sample size for the desired
level of significance was a minimum of 364 students. If the proportion of survey respondents followed a
similar distribution as the overall Fisher student population, 58 international students would’ve been
expected to respond. As we will discuss later, while the overall response rate exceeded the required
sample size, the response rate for international students was somewhat lower than anticipated. While the
11
primary conclusions of the paper are statistically significant, the small number of international students
did affect the power of this study. Because of this, more data will need to be collected in the future to
validate the international students’ responses on a larger scale.
Data Collection Method
Data were collected from both domestic and international students of all ages and class rankings
during fall semester. Originally the survey was intended for first and fourth year students to see how
student perceptions of involvement and leadership may change over time, following the approach set
forth by Shao, Kuh, and Carini’s 2005 paper. However, as we will discuss later, the response rate was
not high enough when the survey was sent to just first and fourth year students, so it was opened up to
the entire Fisher undergraduate student population. They were asked to respond to an online survey
inquiring about high school involvement, relative importance placed on different academic and
extracurricular areas, and interests in campus involvement. International students have been defined
previously as being “individuals enrolled in institutions of higher education who are on temporary
student visas and are non-native English speakers (NNES)” (Snow et al. 2005). Although in the survey
students were all asked both if they are a domestic or international student and if English is their first
language, this paper deviates from this definition. By placing all students who identified as international
in the international group, regardless of whether they self-reported as native or non-English speakers, we
seek to gain a more inclusive perspective of the overall international student population.
12
Data Analysis
Results from the survey were analyzed to determine if a significant difference exists between
domestic students and international students regarding high school experiences, perceptions about
involvement, and hesitations regarding joining student organizations. Twelve two-sample t-tests were
run to compare both the domestic and international students, and paired t-tests were utilized in a later
analysis to determine if individuals within the groups changed significantly from high school to college.
Data Analysis Method
To test the twelve hypotheses, individual two-sample t-tests were utilized to determine if any
significant difference exists between involvement values, experiences, and perceptions of international
students compared with domestic American students. Each of the twelve questions had response options
listed on a 5-step Likert scale related to the student’s attitude toward the variable’s importance. Each
response on the attitude scale was assigned a numeric value from 1 to 5 (see Appendix B for breakdown
of individual question scales). This allowed the attitude scales to be operationalized as interval data.
International students were assigned the binary code of 1 while domestic students were assigned a 0.
Results from these t-tests can be seen in Appendices C and D. The confidence interval was set at 95%,
with any p-value below 0.05 being considered statistically significant.
Paired T-Tests
To test if a significant difference exists between students’ values in high school and college,
paired t-tests were utilized using the questions from Hypotheses 1, 6, 10, and 12. Domestic and
13
international students were separated into two groups, and their responses were converted to a numeric
value (see previous section for Likert scales). The confidence interval for paired t-tests was set at 95%,
with any p-value below 0.05 being considered statistically significant.
14
Results
An online Qualtrics survey was sent out to students at the Columbus campus via a list-serve
provided by the Undergraduate Business Council. The survey was sent through email to all first and
fourth year students, with a random drawing of gift cards as an incentive to encourage a higher response
rate. After the survey was sent out initially, 456 total responses were recorded by first and fourth year
students. Unfortunately, after the first round of emails were sent out only 15 responses were from
international students, greatly limiting the significance of any statistical analysis. Further, after removing
incomplete or unqualified responses, only 427 domestic and 14 international responses remained. To
remedy the situation, another round of emails was sent out to the remaining Fisher undergraduate
student population (second, third, and fifth year students). This required a departure from one original
aim of the research; to target first and fourth year students specifically to see if values of the two groups
differed. After the survey was sent out again to the remainder of the population, 858 total students
responded.
The responses were then checked for validity, and consequently 61 individuals were excluded
from analysis due to a combination of failure to complete the survey, extremely short survey response
time, and not meeting the age requirement for the survey. The sample size met the minimum
requirements for a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of 5%, but the number of international
student responses utilized in the data was below the targeted level at 27 valid responses.
Looking at the demographic breakdown of the sample, we observed a higher female response
rate than one would expect from the overall Fisher population, which is 40% female. See figure 1 below
for the overall gender breakdown. The respondents’ academic ranking breakdown aligned somewhat
15
better with overall population statistics published by Fisher College of Business, although first-year
students in the domestic student population had a much higher response rate than their international
counterparts (see figure 2 below). This somewhat higher proportion of first year responses may have
biased the sample results because students in their first semester at university may hold significantly
different values than fourth year students, as Zhao, Kuh, and Carini’s 2005 research indicated.
Figure 1. Gender Proportion of Respondents
Figure 2. Academic Ranking of Respondents
16
Students who responded to the survey follow general demographic trends of the Fisher College
of Business undergraduate student population, with roughly 86% of international students self-reporting
as being from Asian descent, and about 85% of domestic respondents identifying as white or Caucasian
(see figure 3 below for entire group). Lastly, the proportion of international students who transferred to
Ohio State from another university was much higher than the domestic respondents (60.71% and
13.64%, respectively), as one might predict based on higher overall transfer rates for international
students at Ohio State.
Figure 3. Race Proportion of Respondents
High School Involvement
Moving past demographic trends and into the overall trends from survey results, on the next page
is the overall breakdown of student responses for the fourth question, which inquired about involvement
in high school. Several interesting trends were immediately apparent, specifically that domestic students
averaged almost double the involvement in organized sports teams, academic-related clubs, and part-
time jobs. Further, 25% of domestic students were involved in religious groups in high school, almost
22% higher than their international peers. The extent to which involvement in these specific categories
17
while in high school impacted their choices of involvement in college is unknown, but further research
may be able to glean more insights about what specific high school involvements have the greatest
correlation with overall leadership and involvement value in college.
Figure 4. High School Involvement Categories
Hypothesis Test Results
Moving forward into hypothesis testing results, the first round of statistical analysis focused on
the twelve survey questions that asked specifically about values in high school and at Ohio State. Out of
these twelve hypotheses, only four differences were found to be statistically significant. These were
found to be significant based on a two-sample t-test and our desired confidence level. While no
18
hypotheses tests regarding university involvement were found to indicate that a significant difference
exists between the values of domestic and international students at the university level, we did note
several trends that merit mention. These two areas are discussed separately below. See Appendix C for
summarized results of the hypothesis tests and Appendix D for the full outputs of all hypothesis tests.
Hypothesis 1: High School Involvement
Question Group N Mean StDev SE Mean Est. Diff. T-Value DF P-Value
HS-How important
was your
involvement in
high school to you?
Domestic
798 3.98 1.07 0.038
Intl. 27 3.15 1.13 0.22 Test 0.832 3.76 27 0.001
𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝟏: In high school, the value placed on involvement is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
Hypothesis 5: High School Class Difficulty
Question Group N Mean StDev SE Mean Est. Diff. T-Value DF P-Value In High School
(Grades 9-12),
how important
were the below
activities to
you? Taking
advanced
classes
Domestic 798 4.184 0.985 0.035
Intl. 27 3.48 1.19 0.23
Test
0.703 3.04 27 0.005
Conclusion 2: In high school, the value placed on taking advanced classes is DIFFERENT for domestic and
international students
19
Hypothesis 6: High School Extra-Curricular Activities
Question Group N Mean StDev SE Mean Est. Diff. T-Value DF P-Value In High School
(Grades 9-12), how
important were the
below activities to
you? Participating
in extra-curricular
activities
Domestic 798 4.11 1 0.036
Intl. 27 3.33 1.18 0.23
Test
0.776 3.38 27 0.002
Conclusion 3: In high school, the value placed on participating in extra-curricular activities is DIFFERENT
for domestic and international students
Hypothesis 7: High School Leadership Aspirations
Question Group N Mean StDev SE Mean Est. Diff. T-Value DF P-Value In High School
(Grades 9-12), how
important were the
below activities to
you? -Being a
leader among my
peers
Domestic 797 3.74 1.16 0.041
Intl. 27 3.19 1.08 0.21
Test
0.551 2.61 28 0.014
Conclusion 4: In high school, the value placed on being a leader among peers is DIFFERENT for domestic
and international students
Conclusions from the high school section of the survey indicate that while in high school,
international and domestic students placed significantly different levels of importance in the areas of
involvement, class difficulty, extracurricular activity, and leadership aspirations. For all four tests that
were found to be statistically significant, domestic students’ responses show that they placed higher
value on all four areas than their international counterparts. This result is reinforced by other responses
of the survey, where domestic students had significantly higher average involvement in extra-curricular
activities including volunteer organizations, music or theater, part-time jobs, and student government
while in high school. This may also be related to a variety of cultural, socioeconomic, and geographic
factors discussed previously in the literature review. Interestingly, one area where domestic and
20
international students did not show significantly different results was in the importance of college
entrance examinations, with domestic students reporting higher, but not statistically significant, overall
importance. This diverges from previous independent studies conducted by Qi, Kristofk, and Fuligni.
Convergence of Values
As seen in the above data, the only significant difference between the two groups can be found in
their importance weighting of these four different areas in high school. It is important to note that
becoming involved or a being a leader was not found to be valued differently by the two groups in
college, suggesting that domestic and international students’ views on involvement may converge during
college years. Further, while the mean importance placed on involvement and leadership from high
school to college decreased for domestic students, it increased for international students (see figures 5
and 6 below). This convergence of values was further tested through four paired t-tests, and all were
found to be statistically significant. The results of the paired t-tests can be found below in table 5.
Table 5: Paired T-Test Results
Figure 5: Changes in Leadership Value from High School to College
21
Figure 6: Changes in Involvement Value from High School to College
Another interesting point revealed by the data seen in figures 5 and 6 above is that while in
college, international students identified being a leader on campus and becoming involved as more
important on average than their domestic counterparts. Although this difference between international
and domestic students was not found to be statistically significant at university, the heightened interest
HS-Being a Leader Among Peers OSU-Being a Leader
Domestic 3.74 3.55
International 3.19 3.63
3
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
Axi
s Ti
tle
Value of Leadership: High School to College
HS-How important was yourinvolvement in high school to
you?OSU Becoming Involved
Domestic 3.98 3.78
International 3.15 3.81
3
3.2
3.4
3.6
3.8
4
4.2
Axi
s Ti
tle
Value of Involvement: High School to College
22
in leadership and involvement should be reflected in a higher number of international students
participating in and visibly leading student organizations. However, exploratory research revealed that
outside of culturally-focused student organizations, the international student population is
underrepresented in student organizations and on executive boards at the Fisher College of Business.
Moving forward, more research will be necessary to determine what barriers international students may
face when seeking out involvement and leadership opportunities, as well as how The Ohio State
University can better support these students in their extra-curricular involvement.
23
Discussion
The analysis revealed that while their values in high school may differ significantly, the value
which both international and domestic students place on leadership and involvement evolves from high
school to college. Overall, this could also mean that the two groups may not be as different as previous
papers have found when one looks at values and the importance placed on involvement while in college.
It is important to qualify these findings with areas where the nature of the data collection method
may have caused bias in the data. Some possible factors that may have distorted this data include the
low overall percentage of international students, response bias, and the personalities of business students
which may vary from the overall campus population. Further, there may be bias introduced by the fact
that students were able to opt-out of the research; more involved students may have been more inclined
to participate in the study.
24
Practical Implications & Further Research
The first practical implication of this work is that it indicates statistically what many students
may find intuitively to be true; that while enrolled at a university students’ values may converge with
those around them. This change is most significant among international students, who arguably are
experiencing a much larger cultural change than their domestic peers. As a result, it is important that
moving forward Fisher College of Business and other colleges at Ohio State work to better understand
how convergence of values may impact (or even predict) students’ overall assimilation. In a world that
is overall growing more culturally diverse, it is crucial that universities work to understand the needs
and values of all students in order to better meet them.
Additionally, given the discrepancy between their stated importance of leadership and
involvement and their actual involvement in Fisher student organizations, an important next step is to
explore how international students choose which student organizations to become involved in, and what
their thought process looks like when deciding whether or not to pursue a position on the leadership
board of a club. It is possible that in addition to apparent reasons like language barriers, time constraints,
or lack of interest; there may be some other yet-to-be discovered motive that could lead to lower overall
international student involvement in student organizations at Fisher College of Business.
On a cautionary note, the importance of this work is not as an impetus to generate some form of
“call to action” to find ways to coerce international students to join more student organizations or apply
for more leadership positions. This mindset would be somewhat paternalistic in nature and possibly not
in the students’ best interest. Rather, this research could have the biggest impact on both the portion of
the international student population who may be interested in joining new student groups as well as the
25
current leaders of organizations campus-wide who may be looking for ways to be more inclusive to all
students. Exploratory research conducted previous to the research collection indicated that some
international students prefer to engage with organizations that are composed mainly of other
international students. This is reinforced by Zhao’s previously mentioned 2005 study that found
international students prefer to engage with others from their same home county. As such, members of
our international student body who may be primarily involved in culturally focused or internationally
dominated student organizations are displaying their value of leadership and involvement already in an
environment that is preferable to them, there are just less student organizations that cater specifically to
international students.
Nevertheless, as we strive to become a more inclusive campus and provide domestic and
international students with more opportunities to engage outside of the classroom, there is always work
to be done. In student organizations where students must apply (or be interviewed by peers) to be
admitted into the organization, current executive boards could be formally educated on how they can
best reach, recruit, and serve international students. This survey could be also extended to include the
entire university to give us an opportunity to see if the results of our Fisher survey ring true for other
colleges.
Lastly, the subtler but still impactful takeaway from trends observed through this research is that
while students may enter into their time at The Ohio State University with vastly different leadership
and involvement experiences, as they adjust to campus the two groups have expressed an overall
tendency to converge. This behavior should be studied more extensively to determine how Fisher
College of Business may differ from other colleges as well as other universities.
26
References
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29
Appendix A. Involvement on Campus Survey
Q1
Welcome to the Research Study!
We are interested in understanding Fisher students' involvement in high school and at Ohio State.
You will be presented with information relevant to this topic and asked to answer some questions about
it. We will only ask for your email for the purposes of distributing the raffle prizes.
The study should take you under 10 minutes to complete, and you will be entered in a raffle to
win one of TWENTY $20 Amazon gift cards for your participation. Your participation in this
research is voluntary. You have the right to withdraw at any point during the study, for any reason, and
without any prejudice. If you would like to contact the Principal Investigator in the study to discuss this
research, please e-mail Roger Bailey at [email protected].
By clicking the button below, you acknowledge that your participation in the study is voluntary,
you are 18 years of age, and that you are aware that you may choose to terminate your participation in
the study at any time and for any reason without prejudice.
o I consent, begin the study (1)
o I do not consent, I do not wish to participate (2)
Q2 Please enter your OSU email below. It will be deleted after raffle winners are drawn
________________________________________________________________
Page Break
Q3 Think back to your life before OSU... what kind of city/town did you live in for a majority of your
life?
o Rural Town(not densely populated) (1)
o Suburban Town/City (somewhat populated) (2)
o Urban City (very densely populated) (3)
Q4 In high school (Grades 9-12), what activities were you involved in outside of the classroom? Check
all that apply.
▢ Organized Sports Team(s) (1)
▢ Academic-Related Club (Example: Spanish Club) (2)
▢ Music or Theater (3)
▢ Student Government/Council (4)
▢ Volunteer Organization(s) (5)
▢ Religious Group(s) (6)
▢ Part-Time Job (7)
▢ Other (Please Specify) (8) ________________________________________________
▢ None (9)
Q5 Did you hold any official leadership positions in the above activities?
o Yes, more than one (1)
o Yes, one (2)
o No (3)
30
Q6 How important was your involvement in high school to you?
o Extremely important (1)
o Very important (2)
o Moderately important (3)
o Slightly important (4)
o Not at all important (5)
Q7 In High School (Grades 9-12), how important were the below activities to you?
Q8 Please identify any groups on campus that you are either CURRENTLY involved in or have been
involved in in the PAST. Please note that we define active involvement as attending meetings at least
once monthly. Check ALL that apply.
Level of Importance
Not at all
Important (1)
Slightly
Important (2)
Moderately
important (3)
Very
important (4)
Extremely
important (5)
Maintaining
an high GPA
(1) o o o o o Earning a
high score on
ACT, SAT, or
other College
Entrance
Exam (2)
o o o o o
Taking
advanced
classes (3) o o o o o Participating
in extra-
curricular
activities (4) o o o o o
Being a
leader among
my peers (5) o o o o o
31
Never Involved
(1)
Applied/Rushed But Never Joined
(2)
Previously Involved (3)
Currently Involved (4)
Academic/College (1) o o o o Awareness/Activism
(2) o o o o Community
Service/Service Learning (3) o o o o Creative and
Performing Arts (4) o o o o Ethnic/Cultural (5) o o o o
Governace Organizations (6) o o o o
Honoraries/Honor Societies (7) o o o o
Media, Journalism, and Creative Writing
(8) o o o o Professional
Fraternities/Sororities (9) o o o o
Religious/Spiritual (10) o o o o
Social Fraternities/Sororities
(11) o o o o
Special Interest (12) o o o o Sports and
Recreation (13) o o o o Technology (14) o o o o
32
Q9 Please check any below Fisher student organization that you are CURRENTLY involved in, or have
been involved in PREVIOUSLY. Please note that active involvement in an organization is defined as
attending meetings at least once monthly.
(List of all Fisher Student Organizations currently recognized on fisher.osu.edu websit
33
Q10 How important is being involved at Ohio State to you?
o Extremely important (1)
o Very important (2)
o Moderately important (3)
o Slightly important (4)
o Not at all important (5)
Page Break
Q11 Have you held a leadership positions in any of the clubs you have been involved in at Ohio State?
o Yes (1)
o No (2)
Q12 If you answered "Yes" to the above question, please indicate the title of the position(s). Check all
that apply. If you answered "No" to the above question, select "N/A"
▢ President (1)
▢ Vice President (2)
▢ Treasurer (3)
▢ Secretary (4)
▢ Other (Please Specify) (5) ________________________________________________
▢ N/A (6)
Q13 How important do you think that leadership is to companies looking to hire students for internships
or full time jobs?
o Extremely important (1)
o Very important (2)
o Moderately important (3)
o Slightly important (4)
o Not at all important (5)
Page Break
Q14 How important are the below activities to you here at Ohio State?
34
Q15 How difficult was it for you to adjust to campus?
o Extremely easy (1)
o Moderately easy (2)
o Slightly easy (3)
o Neither easy nor difficult (4)
o Slightly difficult (5)
Q16 How similar do you feel you are to other students on campus?
o Extremely similar (1)
o Moderately similar (2)
o Slightly similar (3)
o Neither similar nor different (4)
o Slightly different (5)
Page Break
Q17 What is your age?
________________________________________________________________
Q18 What is your year at The Ohio State University? (Note: If you transferred from another university
include that time in your total)
o First Year (1)
o Second Year (2)
o Third Year (3)
o Fourth Year (4)
o Fifth Year (or above) (5)
Importance
Not at all
important (1)
Slightly
important (2)
Moderately
important (3)
Very
important (4)
Extremely
important (5)
Maintaining a
high GPA (1) o o o o o Making new
friends (2) o o o o o Becoming
involved on
campus (3) o o o o o Being a
leader on
campus (4) o o o o o
35
Q19 Did you transfer to Ohio State after studying at another university?
o Yes (1)
o No (2)
Q20 What is your gender?
o Male (1)
o Female (2)
o Other (3)
o Prefer not to answer (4)
Q21 Are you an international student?
o Yes (1)
o No (2)
Q22 What country are you from? If you have lived in multiple countries, choose the one that you
identify most with.
(Dropdown List of Countries)
Q23 Do you consider English to be your primary language?
o Yes (1)
o No (2)
Q24 Which of the following races do you consider yourself to be? (select all that apply)
▢ White or Cacasian (1)
▢ Black or African American (2)
▢ American Indian or Alaska Native (3)
▢ Asian (4)
▢ Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (5)
▢ Other (specify) (6) ________________________________________________
36
Appendix B. Likert Scales
Not at all
Important
Slightly
Important
Moderately
important
Very
important
Extremely
important
1 2 3 4 5
Extremely
easy
Moderately
easy
Slightly
Easy
Neither
easy nor
difficult
Slightly
difficult
1 2 3 4 5
Extremely
similar
Moderately
similar
Slightly
similar
neither
similar nor
different
slightly
different
1 2 3 4 5
37
Appendix C. Summarized Results of Hypothesis Tests
Question Group N Mean StDev SE Mean Est. Diff. T-Value DF P-Value
HS-How important was
your involvement in high
school to you?
Domestic 798 3.98 1.07 0.038
Intl. 27 3.15 1.13 0.22
Test 0.832 3.76 27 0.001
In High School (Grades
9-12), how important
were the below activities
to you? - Maintaining
High GPA
Domestic 798 4.534 0.793 0.028
Intl. 27 4.22 1.01 0.19
Test 0.312 1.58 27 0.125
In High School (Grades
9-12), how important
were the below activities
to you? - High
SAT/Exam Score
Domestic 797 4.467 0.778 0.028
Intl. 27 4.19 1 0.19
Test 0.282 1.45 27 0.16
In High School (Grades
9-12), how important
were the below activities
to you? - Level of
Importance - Taking
advanced classes
Domestic 798 4.184 0.985 0.035
Intl. 27 3.48 1.19 0.23
Test 0.703 3.04 27 0.005
In High School (Grades
9-12), how important
were the below activities
to you? - Level of
Importance -
Participating in extra-
curricular activities
Domestic 798 4.11 1 0.036
Intl. 27 3.33 1.18 0.23
Test 0.776 3.38 27 0.002
In High School (Grades
9-12), how important
were the below activities
to you? - Level of
Importance - Level of
Importance - Being a
leader among my peers
Domestic 797 3.74 1.16 0.041
Intl. 27 3.19 1.08 0.21
Test 0.55 0.551 2.61 28 0.014
OSU-How Important is
Being Involved
Domestic 798 3.54 1.09 0.039
Intl. 27 3.52 1.09 0.21
Test 0.022 0.1 27 0.92
OSU-Importance to
Internships
Domestic 798 4.188 0.837 0.03
Intl. 27 4.185 0.879 0.17
Test 0.003 0.02 27 0.987
OSU-High GPA Domestic 797 4.425 0.724 0.026
38
Intl. 27 4.259 0.859 0.17
Test 0.166 0.99 27 0.33
OSU-Making New
Friends
Domestic 795 4.111 0.95 0.034
Intl. 27 3.852 0.77 0.15
Test 0.259 1.7 28 0.1
OSU Becoming Involved Domestic 797 3.78 1.03 0.037
Intl. 27 3.81 1.21 0.23
Test -0.033 -0.14 27 0.889
OSU-Being a Leader Domestic 794 3.55 1.14 0.04
Intl. 27 3.63 1.11 0.21
Test -0.083 -0.38 27 0.707
39
40
Appendix D. Hypothesis Test Results from Minitab
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
Q6
-Ho
w i
mp
ort
an
t w
as
yo
ur
invo
l
Boxplot of Q6-How important was your invol
41
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
HS
-Main
tain
ing
Hig
h G
PA
Boxplot of HS-Maintaining High GPA
42
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
HS
- H
igh
SA
T/E
xam
Sco
re
Boxplot of HS- High SAT/Exam Score
43
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
HS
-Ad
van
ced
Cla
sses
Boxplot of HS-Advanced Classes
44
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
HS
-Extr
a-C
urr
icu
lars
Boxplot of HS-Extra-Curriculars
45
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
HS
-Bein
g a
Lead
er
Am
on
g P
eers
Boxplot of HS-Being a Leader Among Peers
46
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
OS
U-H
ow
im
po
rtan
t is
bein
g i
nvo
Boxplot of OSU-How important is being invo
47
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
OS
U-H
ow
im
po
rtan
t to
co
mp
an
ies
Boxplot of OSU-How important to companies
48
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
OS
U-H
igh
GP
A
Boxplot of OSU-High GPA
49
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
OS
U-M
akin
g N
ew
Fri
en
ds
Boxplot of OSU-Making New Friends
50
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
OS
U B
eco
min
g I
nvo
lved
Boxplot of OSU Becoming Involved
51
YesNo
5
4
3
2
1
Q21-Are you an international st
OS
U-B
ein
g a
Lead
er
Boxplot of OSU-Being a Leader
52
International Student Paired T-Test: High School vs. College Involvement
3210-1-2-3
10
8
6
4
2
0X_
Ho
Differences
Fre
qu
en
cy
Histogram of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
3210-1-2-3
X_
Ho
Differences
Boxplot of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
53
International Student Paired T-Test: High School vs. College Leadership
10-1-2
15.0
12.5
10.0
7.5
5.0
2.5
0.0X_
Ho
Differences
Fre
qu
en
cy
Histogram of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
1.00.50.0-0.5-1.0-1.5-2.0
X_
Ho
Differences
Boxplot of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
54
Domestic Student Paired T-Test: High School vs. College Involvement
420-2-4
300
250
200
150
100
50
0X_
Ho
Differences
Fre
qu
en
cy
Histogram of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
43210-1-2-3-4-5
X_
Ho
Differences
Boxplot of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
55
Domestic Student Paired T-Test: High School vs. College Leadership
420-2-4
300
250
200
150
100
50
0X_
Ho
Differences
Fre
qu
en
cy
Histogram of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)
43210-1-2-3-4-5
X_
Ho
Differences
Boxplot of Differences(with Ho and 95% t-confidence interval for the mean)